Connectors are known which optically connect one optical fiber to another wherein the transmission core of each fiber is aligned axially with the other and is centered therewith, and a preferably polished optical end surface of each core abuts or nearly abuts against the other. An example of such a connector is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,167,303 and another in U.S. Pat. No. 4,477,146. With such connectors a ferrule may be applied to the end of each fiber in the factory under controlled conditions and with necessary equipment, to terminate the fiber. A coupling member may be applied later at the site of the connection of two thus-terminated fibers.
Fiber optic splice connectors are also known wherein an additional length of fiber may be optically connected to an unterminated first length, and with such connectors it is desirable that they be appliable under field conditions, not in the factory. An example of a splice connector is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,415,232 and 4,473,272. It is desirable that such field appliable splice connectors be easily and quickly appliable, under adverse conditions and with minimum equipment to unterminated fibers. A common feature of prior art splice connectors is that they splice the fibers in an end-to-end relationship.
Where a fiber cable contains many individual optical fibers to be spliced, such as is common in the telecommunications field and in office construction, splice connections are made at one location and are maintained in a splice enclosure such as a junction box. The splices are preferred to be kept in an organizer for ready individual access within the junction box. It is desirable that such junction boxes be large enough to allow for loops or coils of excess lengths of the spliced fibers to be contained therein without requiring very tight curvature of the loop or coil, which could damage the fibers or cause light signal losses due to bending. Also, to protect the fibers and the integrity of the light signal, the fibers must also be allowed to extend outwardly from the splice connector in a straight manner, not bent or at an angle. Prior splice connectors receive opposing fibers from opposing ends, requiring substantial associated space around the connector for the fiber extensions. Therefore, such junction boxes tend to be large, and it would be advantageous to provide a splice connector in which the fibers are spliced side by side and thus both extend outwardly from the same end of the connector, which results in less space needed within the junction box for the fiber lengths.